Hoary Redpoll is a photograph by Leone Lund which was uploaded on October 26th, 2013.
Hoary Redpoll
A Hoary Redpoll I photographed on our feeder in February 2013 in British Columbia.... more
by Leone Lund
Title
Hoary Redpoll
Artist
Leone Lund
Medium
Photograph - Digital Photography
Description
A Hoary Redpoll I photographed on our feeder in February 2013 in British Columbia.
The website "All About Birds" (www.allaboutbirds.org) has this to say about this interesting bird:
"A small pale bird of the high Arctic, the Hoary Redpoll is a rare winter visitor to southern Canada and the northern United States.
Two subspecies of Hoary Redpoll are recognized: the southern (C. h. exilpes) and the Greenland (C. h. hornemanni) forms. The southern form breeds across Canada, Alaska, and Eurasia, and is slightly darker and sleeker. The Greenland form breeds only in the very high Arctic of Greenland and neighboring Canada, and is very pale with a large white rump.
The Hoary Redpoll will breed in open tundra, but usually in small willows and other shrubs in sheltered areas. When suitable nest sites are unavailable, it has been known to nest in cavities in driftwood.
The Hoary Redpoll has very fluffy body feathers that help it stay warm in extremely cold temperatures. In addition, it has feathers on areas of its body that are bare in most other birds. If temperatures get too high, a redpoll may pluck out some of its body feathers and get rid of some of its insulation. These feathers will grow back in a few days, but by then in the high arctic environment, temperatures probably will have dropped back to normal."
Uploaded
October 26th, 2013